Castle Of Her Endless Longing
by Victoria Saint Clair
Summary: Lady Kate Sackett stared forlornly out her carriage when a roguish handsome man came trotting up to her carriage. "Pleasant morning, m' lady." He said. "There are dangerous woods just ahead. Could I offer to ride along?" (Spoilers for HEAT RISES)


_**A Few Words From The Author:**_

Love makes the world go round.

That, dear reader, is what I have been told since my first breath. No matter where you are, who you are, etc., you can love and be loved, understand love, and love one another. It spans time, universes, and even literature. There is no story without love. The love of writing it, the love of reading it, the love of being in it; the love of a brother, the love of a lover, the love of a friend. In my first novel, "Always", Malcom Fillion said it to his wife Simone Katic best: "We cannot have life without love. We cannot live without love. To be frank, dear, we can't BE without love." And I would like to think that this latest book, _Castle of Her Endless Longing,_ will teach you a thing or two about just what love is… and how to experience it.

Always,

Victoria St. Clair

Hamptons, NY 2011

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_**Chapter One: The Encounter**_

Lady Kate Sackett stared forlornly out of the carriage as it bounced along the muddy, rutted byway outside her ancestral village in the northland. She was contemplating the brooding form of the castle built into the cliffs when a young man on horseback cantered up to her window and kept pace. He was handsome in a rouguish way, the sort of rascal who would charm a more naïve woman for his own sport and be gone. "Pleasant morning, m' lady." He said. "There are dangerous woods just ahead. Could I offer to ride along?"

Lady Sacket looked rather amusingly at the man; he seemed of noble blood, something that Lady Sackett had no experience with, being from her homely yet rather poore village. She smiles at the man fondly, but waves a gentle hand to dismiss him. "I beg your pardon, kind Sir, but I am afraid that these woods are my home. I played in them every day as a child. They are no less my home than the village over yonder."

But the young man gave her a charming smile and continued to follow the carriage's pace; he would not be so easily discouraged from courting this fair maiden. "I beg your pardon, m'lady, but I have seen the best of men be lost in these woods. They are much more treacherous in the dark. I pray you, allow me to accompany you through. It would put me at ease to know that such a fair maiden as yourself to be safe from all ills."

Lady Sackett took to blush at his comment, and to the delight of him, agreed to his company. "I thank you for your bravery to travel with a stranger through such dangers. You must be an honest man, are you not?"

"Honest and true, my fair lady, of that I am certain. And I thank you for your compliment. 'tis not common to be given one by someone as rare of beauty as yourself."

Lady Sackett bowed her head slightly in humbleness. "'tis not common to have someone so full of bravery accompany me through such… troubling… times." She smiles brightly at him. "I do beg for your forgiveness, though, Sir."

The young man looks at her curiously. "Why so, dear Lady?"

"Because there have been five men on our trail since the very start of mine journey."

The man turns and finds that the lady is right; five men on horseback do come towards them at a quickening pace. "Oh, Lady!" The good man exclaims, turning his horse around as Lady Sackett's carriage stops. "Leave here at once! The battle that shall ensue is no place for a lady as fine as yourself-"

"I do believe I have some skill in conveying with these type of men." She assures him. Her driver gets out of the driver's seat and opens the carriage door for Lady Sackett, who flows gracefully out of her transport and onto the dirt ground. She is not, he realizes, in the usual attire of a lady; he has already well spotted the dagger in her cloak and the broadsword her driver is preparing for her. _By Heaven!_ The young man exclaims, _Just who is this woman, who can wield a dagger without being so much as chastised by a noble man such as her driver?_

"Are you ready, kind Sir?" Lady Sackett asks, putting her arms in front of her so the dagger could not be seen. "I pray you have some practice in dealing with hoodlums such as those over yonder."

The good man scoffs. "But of course, my lady; I have offered you my services, and you shalt not be disappointed. Take heed! They come at once."

The five men circle the carriage, sending an overwhelming feeling of dread through the young man; he was against five men, very experienced, as he could tell by their formations. He gazes upon Lady Sackett once more, astonished that she is so calm. Many a women would of swooned by the look of five villains, and yet there she stands firm. _Yes… different indeed._

"Good morning, kind sirs." Lady Sackett says, bowing slightly to the men. "I believe we have come to a misunderstanding, have we not?"

"You took from us our esteemed comerade!" Said one. After a chorus of "Yeas" and other affirmations, the leader of the pack dismounts his trusty steed and meets Lady Sackett on level ground.

"We shall avenge his capture, Lady Sackett! Be it with his freedom…" he draws his sword and aims it at Lady Sackett's throat. "…Or by your blood."

"Aye, by blood is right, fair men." Lady Sackett says, smiling lightly at her ill-intentioned company. In a flash so quick even her young comrade failed to see it, the leader is wounded in the shoulder, his blade dropping as he falls to his knees in pain. "But by whose blood the ground is nourished with? That is the misunderstanding I mentioned just before."

The other four men try to advance on Lady Sackett, but the woman is a much more experienced swordsmen. Her young 'ride-along' stands aghast at the sudden turn of events; he watches on as one by one, each fall under her blade. He notes, however, that their wounds are far from fatal, despite her having multiple chances to end their miserable lives. After a few minutes, it is Lady Sackett standing tall among fallen men and her dumb-stuck companion.

"Are you alright, there, sir?" She asks, raising an eyebrow towards him. She offers him a hand for him to dismount, but he simply sits there on his horse, astonished. Lady Sackett laughs slightly before smiling up at him. "I have told you, Sir, that these woods have been my home. I never once disagreed with your fears of them being plagued with dangers." He looks down at the fallen men, each with blood visible on their clothes.

"They are suffering!" He exclaims. "Why have you not ended their lives?"

Lady Sackett inspects her blade as she speaks to him. "To have blood on my hands is to have blood on my soul… I work for the righteous, and the righteous do not kill, sir. They only protect."

"What… what in the Gods' names are you?" He exclaims, astonished by the woman's skills. He had never seen such swordplay in a woman before, let alone one he wanted to court. The thought that maybe this one would be un-courtable ran through his head, but he dismissed it at once.

"Lady Sackett, head of the guards here in the Queens." She replies. "And who, might I ask, are you, who comes to my town as a lamb to the slaughter of such vile beasts?"

The young man gulps. "I am Richard, from the family of Mastle-"

"Then I beg of you, Sir Mastle, to please leave at once. Depart at my leisure, for a man who cannot defend himself against such hoodlums should not be a man at all." She sighs and grabs a fallen blade, inspecting it. "I must urge you, however, to do so tomorrow morning, when those that wish us harm do not walk in the shadows."

To this, Mastle was greatly pleased; he nods and bows slightly, kissing the Lady's hand ever so softly. "'tis be an honor, to sleep well in the house of the head of the guard-"

"Oh!" Lady Sackett said with a laugh. "Thou really believes that I shall accompany such a man to bed? I beg your pardon, Sir Mastle! I shall be taking you to my quarters, yes, but there is a guest bed that awaits you, not my own." She laughs again at the very thought; never would she sleep with this man, she knew this well. "Come, come! We must hasten our step, for the man that lingers here is sure to meet death." The man looks on as the driver gathers the men and places them in the carriage, groans sprouting from the fallen. Lady Sackett settles in the front of the carriage, next to the driver. "My fair Sir Espo, let us depart, and bring these heinous men to their leader in the same chains he is in!" She gazes towards Sir Mastle with her bright emerald eyes and a smile playing on her lips. "Doesth thou wish to accompany us?" When Sir Mastle simply nods, Sir Espo starts to move the carriage yet again.

And with such an affair, the three hasten over yonder, towards the Queens, with Sir Mastle looking at the fair Lady Sackett all the while. This was, he was quick to realize, setting up to be a most difficult task, to court this maiden. But to be fair, Sir Mastle was never one to turn down such a challenge; the thrill of the sport was heightened with Lady Sackett, and he failed to see a downside towards his current situation. So he follows them, on slight alert all the while for more scoundrels to appear, as he and his two companions reach the Queens by mid-night.

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Please do not forget to review; I would appreciate some feedback, if you would be so kind.

Cheers,

-Victoria St. Clair


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